WA news LIVE: Missing man’s body found south of Mandurah after five-day search; Forensics confirm missing windsurfer taken by 13-foot-long tiger shark off WA coast

State election promises continue to trickle from party headquarters’ with the latest being a WA Liberals commitment to pump $6 million into Kids Helpline over four years to reverse the number of calls missed by the under resourced service.

Of the 27,000 contact attempts from West Australian children the service was only able to respond to 8772.

Liberal leader Libby Mettam said the election commitment would bring the state’s current $90,000 contribution to the service, run by charity Yourtown, in line with other states.

“Despite Yourtown’s requests for additional funding, Roger Cook’s Government only provides around $90,000 a year, which falls well short of what is required to support this vital service,” Mettam said.

“Everywhere you look, you can see how wrong Roger Cook’s priorities are – he spent $8 million to bring Coldplay to Perth, while approximately two in three contacts to Kids Helpline went unanswered.

“WA’s contribution to this essential service is embarrassing compared to the Eastern States – NSW contributes 46 times more than we do, while Queensland contributes 36 times more.”

Hundreds of people have turned out to protest a proposal to commence fracking operations in the Kimberley, put forward by an American oil and gas company.

The group launched the ‘Frack Free Kimberley’ campaign from Fremantle’s Victoria Hall on Wednesday.

Environs Kimberley director Martin Pritchard, who helped organise the event, said the state’s north was known globally for its landscapes, nature and culture.

“It’s home to the largest, most intact tropical savannah in the world and is a safe haven for species that have disappeared elsewhere,” he said.

“All this is under threat as the first major oil and gas fracking proposal in West Australian history has been put forward by Black Mountain Energy owned by Texan oil and gas billionaire Rhett Bennett.

“Drilling and fracking are proposed in the heart of the Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment, stronghold of threatened species like the Bilby and critically endangered freshwater sawfish.”

Pritchard said the 20-well proposal, if approved by the state government, would be the precursor to thousands of gas fracking wells turning the Kimberley into “an industrial wasteland.”

Kimberley First Nations leader Anne Poelina, Australian of the Year Fiona Stanley and singer John Butler, all also attended the event to show their support for the cause.

A new report out today shows housing affordability in the west has declined over the June 2024 quarter.

The latest REIA Housing Affordability Report showed the proportion of family income required to meet loan repayments in Western Australia increased 1.7 percentage points over the quarter to 39.5 per cent.

This was an increase of 4.8 per cent year-on-year, based on a median weekly family income of $2630 and an average monthly loan repayment of $4504.

Real Estate Institue WA chief executive Cath Hart said the Perth median house price increased more than 20 per cent in the year to June 2024, with the average mortgage increasing 16 per cent over the same period.

“A year ago, price growth was relatively low, but 12 interest rate rises saw mortgage repayments increase by nearly 50 per cent, which has affected housing affordability,” she said.

“However, interest rates have been stable since November 2023 and what we’re now seeing is the effect of strong price growth on affordability. ”

Only the ACT (33.3 per cent of family income) and the Northern Territory (32.4 per cent of family income) were more affordable than WA.

But spare a thought for those living in NSW with homeowners forking out on average 58 per cent of family income to meet loan repayments.

A Broome man who allegedly captured and restrained three young children found swimming in the backyard pool of a vacant property will face the first day of his trial today.

The children, aged six, seven and eight, had their hands cable-tied together and were filmed sobbing while sitting on the ground leaning against a garage door as Mat Radelic, 45, stood beside them.

A distressed passersby live-streamed the incident from over a fence as they pleaded with Radelic to release the children.

Radelic has previously told 9 News Perth he regretted his actions and said they were not racially motivated.

“It didn’t come from a place of hate or nothing, just disappointment and a bit of anger,” he said.

In April, he pleaded not guilty to three counts of aggravated common assault.

These are the headlines making news today.

• Two children have died in hospital after a house fire in Melbourne’s north-west, while their brother continues to fight for life.
• The former judge who presided over an inquiry into former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann’s prosecution gave a draft of his report to a journalist at The Australian before it was delivered to the ACT government, and she texted back that she “loved the section … on presumption of innocence”.

• Kamala Harris’ campaign is pushing for a second presidential debate against Donald Trump but the former president is resisting the idea, insisting that he won their showdown despite getting a “rigged deal” from the moderators.
• Labor has scrubbed criminal penalties for seriously vilifying minority groups from its upcoming hate crimes bill, watering down its proposed laws just months after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vowed to introduce stronger measures to protect people from hate speech.
• Labor will expand its plans to crack down on lies on social media by adding political content into misinformation laws before the federal election, setting up a dispute in parliament about whether the revised plan will curb free speech.

Collective gasp, it’s a 27C forecast for today and tomorrow!

Good morning readers, and thanks for joining us.

This morning, Claire Ottaviano exclusively reports that the leaky pipes that have turned new home builds into nightmares for thousands of West Australians could result in a damage bill that ticks over into the billions.

Sarah Brookes reports on the phenomenon that is seeing house prices soar in Perth’s western suburbs. 

Conservation Council WA executive director Jess Beckerling has written an opinion piece on what she says are WA’s failing nature laws.

And in the ever-uplifting People of Perth series, Mark Naglazas interviews locals on their favourite travel stories and experiences. Fair warning, this one will have you itching to book your next holiday.

Stick around, there’s more on the way.